On 3 June, MEP Bogdan Andrzej Zdrojewski (EPP), Rapporteur, presented in a CULT Committee meeting the draft report on the Erasmus+ programme (2028-2034). The presentation was followed by the reactions of the shadow rapporteurs and other members of the European Parliament’s CULT Committee. 

Based on the extensive consultations with stakeholders, the rapporteur’s report puts forward minimum earmarks for the budget shares of the three main fields: education and training (73.4%, within which 34.6% for higher education), youth and volunteering (14.2%), and sport (4.1%). The report also envisages a flexibility margin at the level of the whole programme (5%), along with increasing the margin in the field of education and training. Other changes proposed by MEP Zdrojewski focus on the strengthening of the principle of European added value, greater inclusion, improved accessibility of the programme, and the call for more synergies with other EU funds, and in particular the European Competitiveness Fund, Horizon Europe, Global Europe, National and Regional Partnership Plans and funding to be delivered through them such as the European Social Fund. 

The report has been informed by a dedicated study which examined the historical evolution of Erasmus+ and assessed the legislative proposal currently discussed for the 2028–2034 programme period. The study identified structural challenges related to linking broader ambitions to budgetary realities, balancing flexibility with governance and oversight in Erasmus+, the adequacy of support, inclusion and unequal access, and administrative complexity. The study also evaluated whether the proposed changes correspond to the problems identified in programme evaluations and studies. 

Higher education stakeholders represented by 17 organisations, including the Academic Cooperation Association (ACA), broadly welcomed MEP Zdrojewski’s draft report in a joint statement co-signed on 2 June, having stressed that: 

• While the call for EUR 47.39 billion for Erasmus+ under the EU’s next long-term budget is a welcome step in the right direction, compared to the European Commission’s proposal, it would only allow the programme to maintain its current level of activities without being sufficient to support the programme’s expanded scope, new actions, and growing expectations. 
• While the introduction of minimum budget allocations for the different sectors and actions of the programme fosters transparency and enables planning security for beneficiaries and national agencies, the proposed share of 73,4% for education and training is a de facto reduction compared to the sector’s current share (i.e. 83% currently, or 79.7% with the integration of the European Solidarity Corps), potentially limiting opportunities across the entire programme, reducing access to mobility, and undermining the mobility targets set by member states. 
• Substantial synergies with other Union programmes and funding sources such as the proposed co-funding of the new scholarships in strategic educational fields by the European Competitiveness Fund, as well as for the European Universities Alliances are key for addressing the above limitations. 

In addition to the above points, ACA stressed, in a separate statement, the importance of maintaining the share of National Agencies’ operational costs at the level of the current programme (i.e. 3,3%) and considerate of the new ambitions, to ensure the continuation of high-quality support to beneficiaries in the expanded programme. 

The CULT Committee is expected to finalise the amendment process by mid-July, with the plenary vote planned for the end of September 2026.